This is NOT A TEST! You have entered into my world of artistry.

I know, I have been MIA for some time now, but a lot has happened in my personal life. I had plans on writing some blog posts regarding spending my first birthday as an Atlanta resident, my one year anniversary as a resident of Atlanta and other random posts including some podcast recordings. However, some events happened in my life to where I decided to take a mental break.

First, I had to experience the death of my grandfather. Since many of you do not know me personally, my grandfather was a pivotal person in my life. Growing up, my biological father was not present in my life. Watching my mother struggle to raise two kids as a single parent, my grandfather stepped in and assisted in taking care of us along with my grandmother. He gave me the experience of having a father even though I was too young to realize it.

Young Jennifer J and her grandfather, Ivory Jackson, Sr. He departed this world on June 2, 2018.

For six months, I watched his health decline rapidly. He was a man of many talents, to where I believe I get it from. He was a hard worker who believed in cherishing not only life itself but to cherish who you are as a person. Going through this process was not easy. Being away from home and my immediate family took a huge toll on me. I wasn't myself, and many of my close friends and family knew this. Now that he is gone, it is time for me to move on and continue to do what God has called me to do, which is flourishing in my ministry - artistry.

Instead of celebrating my birthday, one year anniversary and other accomplishments as a makeup artist, I spent them in a minor state of depression. Other events in my life besides my grandfather were in chaos as well. The job I was working at during that time had my stress levels at an all-time high, and I was unable to focus on my brand.

Until one day - I woke up and said to myself, "I am no longer going to let this depression take over my life". I and two of my friends decided to do a group fast for one month. When I tell you the power of God! He turned my life all the way around! During our fast, we vowed to stay committed, and we did just that. I decided to sacrifice some personal things as well as dedicated each day to journaling, which helped me release a lot of pain that I couldn't even imagine! I am so blessed that God orchestrated them to help get me back on track and I am blessed to have them as my friends.

Let's fast forward to today - September 7, 2018. It is my 3rd-year Blogiversary! Blogging has always been a dream of mine. Three consecutive years of blogging and putting my heart and soul into I am SohoGlam has been a dream come true.

However, God revealed to me that it is time to take my brand to the next level. In order for me to get to that level, I must change the name.

I am now pleased to present to you my upgraded brand, Jennifer J. Artistry. As I celebrate this new beginning, I am retiring my old name, and it will remain a cherished memory of where it has brought me thus far.

I am excited about my new brand. As well as my continued journey as a published professional makeup artist, beauty influencer/ambassador, blogger, and artist.

I want to acknowledge all of you for believing in me as well as supporting me. Thank you all!

Happy October! It's a new month, and we are just under 100 days remaining of 2018. I remember at the beginning of this year, I read through my list of goals I wanted to achieve for 2018 and I can honestly tell you that rebranding was not one of them. However, I did indicate through prayer for an increase in my business and craft.

I was excited to be an attendee of the Makeup Mogul Masterclass taught by makeup artist extraordinaire, Tiyana Robinson. Before we dig in, let me give you a background on how I ended up in her masterclass.

First of all, let me elaborate on how POWERFUL social media is! Thanks to one of my friends, I reached out to a correspondent who posted on Twitter that she was looking for a makeup artist for a short film.

I know, I have been MIA for some time now, but a lot has happened in my personal life. I had plans on writing some blog posts regarding spending my first birthday as an Atlanta resident, my one year anniversary as a resident of Atlanta and other random posts including some podcast recordings. However, some events happened in my life to where I decided to take a mental break.

There is nothing like a good ole blogger challenge! My blogger boo Courtney from Passionate Woman CS created a fun challenge in her latest post, 25 & Winging It. She created this challenge for bloggers to share some fun facts, confessions and life lessons about us. So when my girl and blogger boo Michaela from A Dash of Michaela, shared her post, 23 & Winging It, she then tagged me to join the challenge as well and I am ready for the task.

Summer 2018 is just around the corner, and of course, we are ready, or not. When the sun is out, we are out, and we cannot afford to have our makeup looking like you came through drippin, literally. One thing I hate to see is a queen out and about with her makeup running down her face.

It's been a while since I've done any Get Jay's Look posts and it feels good to bring them back. Kicking off my 2018 makeup looks, it was only right to recreate Beyonce's makeup from her performance at Coachella.

I have always been a fan of Drake's music, especially when he released More Life last year. To this day I still play that album from start to finish. Earlier this year, he released God's Plan, and it caught my attention, at least I thought it did until he dropped, Nice for What this past Friday night. Let me tell you, the MOMENT I HEARD THIS SONG, I instantly fell in love.

Hey loves! Happy first day of March! Spring is upon us, and after a ROUGH month of February, I would like to begin the month with a blog post feature. For this post, I want to feature a fellow blogger, named T Mac and her review of an event she attended in Baltimore, Maryland called Wine & Pasta: Fade II Black sponsored by Wine & Pasta Events, LLC. As much as she anticipated attending the event and supported a black-owned business, unfortunately, T Mac's experience was not a great one.